Nehemiah - A Motivator for the People

Only registered users can see links on this forum! Register or Login on forum!

Nehemiah 2:5
Fortified by his appeal to God and confident in the quality of his past service, Nehemiah was encouraged to make his bold request to the king. Nehemiah still did not mention Jerusalem by name but referred to it as “ the city in Judah. ”

------------

Nehemiah 2:11-12
After the long journey a few days of rest ( “ three ” v 11 ) were necessary ( Ezra 8:32 ). Such was Nehemiah’s discretion that he took only a few men into his confidence at first ( v 12 ). He acted with great care going out at night, no doubt by moonlight, to inspect the situation firsthand.

Nehemiah 2:13
Nehemiah did not make a complete circuit of the walls but only of the southern area to see how much was preserved.

Jerusalem was always attacked where she was most vulnerable, from the north; so there was probably little preserved in that direction.

According to 2 Chronicles 26:9, Uzziah fortified towers in the west wall, on the Tyropoeon Valley.

In the excavations of 1927-28, M. Crowfoot discovered remains of a gate with towers from the Persian and Hellenistic periods, which A. Alt identified with the Valley Gate.

“ Jackal Well ” is literally “ spring of the dragons ” the mythical water monsters ( Gen 1:20-21; Exod 7:9; Ps 74:13; Jer 51:34; Ezek 29:3 ).

The NIV and RSV emend to read ( “ jackals ” Lam 4:3; Mic 1:8 ).

Many scholars suggest this was the junction of the Hinnom and Kidron valleys 275 yards south of the tip of the southeast ridge of Jerusalem

J. Braslavi argues that this must be the major spring of Jerusalem, the Gihon, and that the name “ Tannin ” is derived from the serpentine course of the waters of the spring to the Pool of Siloam. ( It is most probable that Hezekiah’s tunnel followed a natural channel of water through limestone. )

Braslavi believes that the En-Rogel had been buried beneath the debris of the earthquake of Uzziah’s reign and would not have been visible to Nehemiah.

“ The Dung Gate ” led to the rubbish dump in the Hinnom Valley. It was situated about five hundred yards from the Valley Gate ( 3:13 ).

Mazar interprets the Hebrew as s-p-w-t , a form of “ Tophet ” the “ place of burning ” where infant sacrifices were conducted in the days of Manasseh ( 2 Kings 23:10 ).

“ We may conclude that the gate in question led from the City of David to the ‘ burning place ’ of Tophet in the valley of Hinnom ”.

According to Josephus ( War V, 145 [ iv. 2 ] ), the Herodian Jerusalem had a “ Gate of the Essenes ” which was used by the Essenes to reach the Bethso, or latrines. This gate cannot be identified with Nehemiah’s “ Dung Gate ” although; it is to be located much farther north on the grounds of the Institute of Holy Land Studies.

Nehemiah 2:14
“ The Fountain Gate ” was possibly in the southeast wall facing toward En-Rogel. According to 2 Kings 20:20 ( 2 Chronicles 32:30 ), Hezekiah diverted the overflow from his Siloam Tunnel to irrigate the royal gardens ( 2 Kings 25:4 ) located at the junction of the Kidron and Tyropoeon valleys.

Nehemiah 2:15
The NIV and RSV indicate that Nehemiah retraced his steps and reentered the city at the Valley Gate on the west slope of Ophel.

Nehemiah 2:16
“ Nobles ” comes from the root “ to be free ” ( 4:14, 19; 5:7; 6:17; 7:5; 13:17 ). These were the notable men of the clans who directed public affairs.

Nehemiah 2:17
The walls and gates of Jerusalem had lain in ruins since their destruction by Nebuchadnezzar some 130 years before, despite attempts to rebuild them. The leaders and people had evidently become content to this sad state of affairs.

It took someone not part of the situation to assess the problem and rally the people to renewed efforts

Nehemiah 2:18
Nehemiah could personally attest that God was alive and active on his behalf. He had come, with royal sanction and authority. What was required and what Nehemiah provided was a vision and decisive leadership.

Nehemiah was a shaker, a mover, and a doer.

Nehemiah 2:19
Biblical and extra biblical documents indicate that Arabs became dominant in the Transjordanian area from the Assyrian to the Persian periods ( Gen 25:13; Isa 60:7; Jer 49:28-33 ).

Sargon II resettled some Arabs in Samaria in 715 B.C.

A Lihyanite inscription from Dedan ( modern Al-’Ula ) in northwest Arabia reads: “ Jasm son of Sahr and ‘Abd, governor of Dedan. ” This Jasm is identified by Winnett and Albright with the biblical Geshem.

In 1947 some silver vessels, with Aramaic inscriptions dating to the late fifth century B.C., were discovered at Tell el-Maskhuta near Ismaila by the Suez Canal. One inscription bore the name “ Qaynu the son of Gashmu, the king of Qedar. ”

The son of Geshem records an offering to the goddess “ Han-Ilat. ” Geshem was thus in charge of a powerful north Arabian confederacy of tribes that controlled vast areas from northeast Egypt ( LXX of Gen 45:10 reads “ the land of Gesem of Arabia ” instead of “ the land of Goshen ” ) to northern Arabia to southern Palestine.

Geshem may have been opposed to Nehemiah’s development of an independent kingdom because he feared it might interfere with his lucrative trade in myrrh and frankincense.

“ Ridiculed ” means “ to show contempt for ” “ to despise ” ( 2 Sam 6:16; 2 Kings 19:21; Esth 3:6; Prov 1:7 ).

Nehemiah 2:20
Nehemiah appealed to historical claims to reject the interference of the Samaritan, Ammonite, and Arabian leaders in the affairs of Jerusalem.

By his great confidence and dependence on God for success, he inspired the leaders and the people to a task they had considered beyond their abilities.

Recap

Ezra refused a military escort but Nehemiah accepted it.
Is one of these more spiritual than the other?

The city has not had fortified walls for over 140 years.

Nehemiah worked with persuasion, emotions and desires, “ Let us raise up the walls. “

V 20 has a strong statement, “ Trust in the God of heaven. “

How do we respond to the enemies of the church?

Prayer:
Dear Father in Heaven I pray that when You give us work we do it willingly and with a whole heart. I pray that when You do give us the work we will know that You will be with us the bring it to a conclusion. Thank You Lord.
In the name of Jesus. Amen.

TGIF